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The House in Good Taste
·
Elsie De Wolfe
99
Some
of
the
Eighteenth
Century
boudoirs
were
extremely
small.
I
recall
one
charming
little
room
in
an
old
French
house
that
was
barely
eight
feet
by
eleven,
but
it
contained
a
fireplace,
two
windows,
a
day
bed,
one
of
those
graceful
desks
known
as
a
bonheur
du
jour,
and
two
arm-chairs.
An
extremely
symmetrical
arrangement
of
the
room
gave
a
sense
of
order,
and
order
always
suggests
space.
One
wall
was
broken
by
the
fireplace,
the
wall
spaces
on
each
side
of
it
being
paneled
with
narrow
moldings.
The
space
above
the
mantel
was
filled
with
a
mirror.
On
the
wall
opposite
the
fireplace
there
was
a
broad
paneling
of
the
same
width
filled
with
a
mirror
from
baseboard
to
ceiling.
In
front
of
this
mirror
was
placed
the
charming
desk.
On
each
side
of
the
long
mirror
were
two
windows
exactly
opposite
the
two
long
panels
of
the
mantel
wall.
The
two
narrow
end
walls
were
treated
as
single
panels,
the
day
bed
being
placed
flat
against
one
of
them,
while
the
other
was
broken
by
a
door
which
led
to
a
little
ante-chamber.
Old
gilt
appliques
holding
candles
flanked
both
mantel
mirror
and
desk
mirror.
Two
of
those
graceful
chairs
of
the
Louis
Seize
period
and
a
small
footstool
completed
the
furnishing
of
this
room.
The
boudoir
should
always
be
a
small
room,
because
in
no
other
way
can
you
gain
a
sense
of
intimacy.
Here
you
may
have
all
the
luxury
and
elegance
you
like,
you
may
stick
to
white
paint
and
simple
chintzes,
or
you
may
indulge
your
passion
for
pale-colored
silks
and
lace
frills.
Here,
of
all
places,
you
have
a
right
to
express
your
sense
of
luxury
and
comfort.
The
boudoir
furnishings
are
borrowed
from
both
bedroom
and
drawing-room
traditions.
There
are
certain
things
that
are
used
in
the
bedroom
that
would
be
ridiculous
in
the
drawing-room,
and
yet
are
quite
at
home
in
the
boudoir.
For
instance,
the
chaise-longue
is
part
of
the
bedroom
furnishing
in
most
modern
houses,
and
it
may
also
be
used
in
the
boudoir,
but
in
the
drawing-room
it
would
be
a
violation
of
good
taste,
because
the
suggestion
of
intimacy
is
too
evident.
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